a warm welcome to the swbc annual dinner 2025

On behalf of the Board of SWBC a warm welcome to all our guests from across the South West and beyond to our 2025 annual dinner.

We are delighted to be at The Box again and thank their CEO, Victoria Pomery, and her team for facilitating this event.

We also thank our key sponsors for tonight, Goonvean, Ocean Conservation Trust and The Rigby Group.

It is fitting to record our appreciation of our many members for their continued support and sponsorship. We are a not-for-profit organisation and do not receive any public funding. This means that your membership is critical in enabling us to continue to support your ambitions.

At SWBC we feel very fortunate to work across sectors, across the private, public and third sectors and across the South-West. It does give us the opportunity to convene, inform and connect – which is our key purpose.

Since the financial crisis of 2008 it has felt like a period of continuous disruption when you overlay Brexit, Covid, Russia’s war on Ukraine, energy hikes and recently some interesting approaches to economic policies “across the pond”. Business has been remarkable in adapting to these challenges and, of course, keeping climate change front of mind in how they operate.

The ability of business to adapt or pivot has been crucial for the public sector too. Is it over-simplistic to say that without business, without “commerce” government does not have a penny to spend or indeed, invest? Commerce creates the opportunity for taxation at a business and a personal level that subsequently funds public services.

Whether central government has grasped this I am not sure. The last budget would indicate not, with an unprecedented hit to business and for our rural areas, it has proved doubly difficult. I would also add that it hasn’t shown much interest yet in our part of the South-West either. We are lobbying hard, for instance, for inclusion in the Industrial Strategy, for transport flexibility and for prospective energy opportunities to be realised.

Against a very difficult back-drop there is still much to go after.

Amongst our members and also relating to opportunities we have been helping to “curate” there are approaching £30bn worth of inward investment opportunities. This is before we look at opportunities for growth in sectors such as Defence.

Our ability to deliver a skilled workforce to step up to these opportunities will be critical if we are to maximise the opportunity for well-paid, long-term, sustainable job opportunities and we welcome the proactiveness of our educational establishments and training providers in relation to this challenge.

Turning to tonight’s event. We are hugely grateful to our keynote speaker, Clair Mills, Director in Markets, Banking and Resolution Deputy Governorship at the Bank of England. Aside from her role at the Bank Clair has a family farm on Exmoor and is well-versed on our region. The Bank of England deserves much praise for the way they engage with the south west through Malindi Myers and Jamie Barber – we were particularly pleased to help curate two visits here by the Governor, Andrew Bailey.

Finally, to our members and guests; again thank you for your continued engagement, it is hugely appreciated – Paul Coles, CEO SWBC

the evening’s running order

19:00 – Welcome & opening comments – Paul Coles

19:05 – Clair Mills address and Q&A – Clair Mills

19:30 – Dinner service commences

21:40 – Comfort break

21:50 – Words about the Chair – Liz Waugh

21:55 – Chair’s address – Tim Jones

21:10 – Closing remarks – Paul Coles

22:20 – Dinner concludes & guests are invited to network over drinks

11:00 – Carriages

keynote speaker – Clair Mills, director of banking, change and operations, the bank of england

Clair Mills is Director of Banking, Change and Operations at the Bank of England, supporting the Markets, Banking and Resolution (MBR) Deputy Governorship. She oversees the middle and back-office functions within Banking Services, and has overall responsibility for MBR’s operations, data strategy, operational resilience and risk remit, and the investment and change portfolio.

Clair began her career in retail banking before moving into operational and technological change management and consultancy. She has over 20 years of board-level experience in financial services and has led major strategic and technological transformations across several organisations. In 2011, she joined the Financial Services Authority (FSA) to lead the ‘Twin Peaks’ transition to the PRA/FCA regulatory model, later becoming Chief Operating Officer at the PRA in 2018.

Clair is a frequent keynote speaker on FinTech, RegTech, and the evolving role of central banks in a digital world.

Away from the Bank, Clair splits her time between London and the Southwest, where she and her husband run a livestock farm in Devon.

a word from our dinner sponsors

Ocean Conservation Trust

The Ocean Conservation Trust is a global charity that exists to protect and restore the Ocean. Work began in 1998, centred around harnessing the collective power of people and encouraging positive action through pro-ocean behaviour and habitat restoration.

The vision is a world where the Ocean is thriving, healthy, and sustainably protected for generations to come. Working across three core pillars – Ocean Advocacy, Ocean Habitats and Ocean Experiences, the team invests time, skills and passion into projects that increase biodiversity and combat climate change to protect the Ocean. They work tirelessly to inspire positive change amongst individuals, communities, businesses, and policymakers alike.

The new 5-year Conservation Strategy sets the charity’s direction for the next five years with five key areas of focus. This strategy supports local, national, and international movements and initiatives including Plymouth Sound National Marine Park, the Global Sustainable Development Goals, The World Zoo & Aquarium Conservation Education Strategy, the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development and the UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration.

Inpiring change through connection

rigby group

CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF INNOVATION, INCLUSION & IMPACT

Rigby Group began with a £2,000 investment and one bold idea. Today we’re Europe’s largest private technology company and a UK top-ten wholly-owned family business – still proudly independent and still led by family.

This year, we celebrate the people, partnerships and purpose that helped shaped our journey so far.

From sustainable growth to global impact, from investing in innovation to giving back, 2025 is more that a milestone; it’s a moment to reflect, reconnect and reimagine what comes next.

Independent thinkers since 1975

swbc membership

To find out more about our membership packages, services and how we can support your business, please visit our membership information page Membership Pack and services – South West Business Council or click the ‘JOIN NOW’ button at the bottom of this page.

table artifacts

A word of thanks to our co-sponsor Ocean Conservation Trust for the loan of the fascinating marine artifacts that you will find on your tables. Please refer to the table cards for information and interesting facts!

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